Discovery BoxIsaiah 30:16-17 
Context30:16 You say, ‘No, we will flee on horses,’
so you will indeed flee.
You say, ‘We will ride on fast horses,’
so your pursuers will be fast.
30:17 One thousand will scurry at the battle cry of one enemy soldier; 1
at the battle cry of five enemy soldiers you will all run away, 2
until the remaining few are as isolated 3
as a flagpole on a mountaintop
or a signal flag on a hill.”
1 tn Heb “One thousand from before [or “because of”] one battle cry.” גְּעָרָה (gÿ’arah) is often defined as “threat,” but in war contexts it likely refers to a shout or battle cry. See Ps 76:6.
2 tn Heb “from before [or “because of”] the battle cry of five you will flee.
3 tn Heb “until you are left” (so NAB, NASB, NRSV).
